by Josie Dennis
She eyed Henry’s impressive erection again, and both he and Henry groaned. “Then what will we do?”
“I can’t take care of myself,” Henry admitted, leaning back on his heels.
Julian knew what he had to do, and there was nothing else for it. He’d pleased Henry this way before, and the man needed him.
“Let me,” he said, keeping his face from Poppy as he approached Henry’s cock.
As his mouth closed over the head, he heard her gasp. Henry stroked Julian’s hair as he suckled him, moaning. He hoped this wouldn’t scandalize her. Henry’s moans of pleasure soon set any apprehensions from his mind. He swallowed him down, then drew his mouth up his thick shaft. To his surprise, Poppy’s face was close to his. She smiled, then flicked her little tongue over the head of Henry’s cock.
“Oh, you taste like your scent,” she said, kissing the turgid flesh. “Doesn’t he, Julian?”
Julian could scarcely speak as he watched Poppy begin to please Henry. He joined her, their tongues working together to have Henry arching toward them.
“My God,” he cried, shuddering.
Poppy shared another smile with Julian, and they licked and sucked until Henry was ready to burst. Poppy closed her rosy lips over Henry as he came, taking everything as Henry climaxed.
Julian licked his own lips, then kissed Poppy. “You pleased him,” he said.
“As you did,” she said.
Henry stretched with a satisfied growl, wrapping them both in his arms. “I’ll never forget the sight of the two of you. First fucking and then sucking me.”
Julian watched Poppy for any discomfort from Henry’s words, but their girl appeared quite pleased with herself.
Poppy clasped her hands together. “Loving Julian was wonderful, and pleasing you was surprising.”
“Surprising?” Henry settled back against the linens, drawing her and Julian down with him.
“I agree.” Julian brushed Poppy’s hair back from her face to kiss her, and then leaned over to kiss Henry. “Loving her with you was quite surprising.”
Henry smiled, and it was an intimate expression. Julian felt his Hawk allure and had a brief moment of worry. That was until Poppy sighed and cuddled between them as if she’d been with them for years.
Julian set aside his apprehension and just let himself drift in supreme comfort as he rested entangled with his two lovers.
* * * *
The next morning Henry felt more relaxed than he had in ages. Julian had taken Poppy back up to the attics late last night, leaving Henry to sleep alone. For the first time in his memory, he was less than comfortable with that. Watching Julian take Poppy had exceeded his fantasies, though. The sight of her flush, rosy body straining for its pleasure as Julian drove into her again and again had made Henry so hard he’d ached. Julian’s mouth, and then Poppy’s, had driven him swiftly over the edge afterward. But reclining on the big bed, their limbs entwined as he and Julian hugged Poppy, had been supremely relaxing.
He bathed, and then rang for Julian in order to get dressed. Julian’s smile of greeting pleased him.
“Good morning,” Julian said as he began to go through Henry’s dress for the day.
Henry felt a low hum of sensual awareness, as he always did in Julian’s company. There was also the warmth of friendship, and that he’d never encountered before. Pushing that from his mind, he readied for his day.
He stepped into his trousers and shrugged on the shirt Julian held for him. Together they did up the buttons.
“What are you about this day, Julian?” he asked.
Julian raised his brows. “Work, Henry.”
There was no censure or bitterness he could detect in his simple statement.
Henry nodded. “I’m going into the village with Matthew Hawk today.”
Julian brushed Henry’s jacket and held it out for him. Henry faced the glass as Julian fixed his tie. For this brief moment, their class difference was clear to him in the reflection. Not that Julian didn’t look extremely handsome in his crisp uniform.
“How did you sleep last night?” Julian asked him.
“Alone,” he answered simply.
Now there was warmth in Julian’s blue eyes. “I missed you, too. And Poppy.”
Henry was quiet for a moment. “How was she this morning? I trust you saw her in the kitchens?”
“Poppy is an amazing girl,” Julian said with a grin. “She spoke to me about being with us again.”
It was Henry’s turn to raise his brows. “Truly?”
“It seems she wants to know what you’re like as a lover.”
A flush ran over Henry’s body. “She wants me to fuck her?”
Julian nodded. “She also said she enjoyed your mouth on her.”
Henry whistled. “Amazing, indeed.”
They both fell silent, and Henry could hazard a guess regarding Julian’s thoughts.
“Tonight?” Henry asked.
“Christ, yes.”
They shared a kiss, and Julian left to see to his day’s work. Henry gave his tie a tweak and went downstairs to join the family in the breakfast room. The earl and the countess weren’t present, but Michael Crowley was.
“There’s the man of the hour,” Michael said with a smile.
Henry dipped his head. “Good morning, Michael.”
“We’ve been waiting for you,” Michael said.
Henry blinked. “I didn’t know.”
“Don’t let Michael put you off,” Matthew Hawk said as he entered. “He likes to tease.”
Henry looked at the Lady Hawksfell’s third cousin and found Michael’s eyes dancing with mirth. Henry breathed a little bit easier and sat himself. A footman poured him a cup of coffee and Henry began to relax a bit.
“So what are we about, exactly?” he asked Matthew.
“We’re going to pillage in the village,” Michael answered.
Matthew rolled his eyes. “There is a motorcar Michael wants to eye, and I’m always up for a lark.”
“You drive, Michael?”
“Indeed. You?”
“I haven’t had much chance, but I do love a shiny Daimler.”
Michael smiled. “A man after my own heart.”
“If you two will be talking autos all day, perhaps I’ll stay home,” Matthew said.
“We won’t,” Michael said. “Three gents out for a jaunt on a lovely spring day? I daresay we’ll find other topics of interest to discuss.”
Henry just drank his coffee. He really didn’t have anything much of import to contribute, but if the earl’s brother and his favorite wanted to include him he would try his best. He’d taken a chance with his liaisons, first with Julian, and then adding Poppy to the mix. He’d take a chance to try and fit in with his family.
They all finished breakfast and Michael drove them into the village. The garage Michael sought was on the outskirts, and after kicking tires and stroking the shining blue bonnet of the motorcar in question, Michael went to the man in charge to make arrangements for its delivery to Hawksfell Manor.
On the drive through the village he went on about the auto’s virtue while Henry and Matthew exchanged looks laced with humor. Helmsley was much as expected in a country village, spring-waking trees and flowers, shops bracketing a wide green, and a large pub holding a place of pride on the edge of it.
“The Inn at Helmsley,” Matthew said as Michael slowed the motorcar. “The scene of the crime, as it were,” he added with a wink in Henry’s direction.
“This is where Matthew met his Posy, Henry,” Michael said.
Henry recalled the story from dinner that first night. “And you…got to know her then?”
“Did he ever,” Michael quipped.
“Never mind,” Michael said without heat. “We reconnected when I came to Hawksfell.”
“Where she was a maid,” Henry stated.
“Yes,” he answered.
“He was certainly not the first Hawk to fall for someone on the earl’s
staff,” Michael put in.
This surprised Henry, and gave him a notion that perhaps his attraction to Julian and Poppy wasn’t that unusual.
“Truly?” he asked.
Michael parked the motorcar and the three of them went into the inn. “This is a conversation best held over some ale.”
“He’s not wrong,” Matthew said. “Let’s settle in for some serious conversation.”
Chapter 8
As they settled in the taproom, Henry had to admit that he was eager to hear more.
“Tell me,” he said, taking up his glass.
“You wish to know what other Hawks poached the earl’s land?” Michael asked.
Matthew chuckled. “There have been quite a few, actually. Hmm, let me see. There was Patrick, of course. Derek and Victor.”
“Graham and Trevor. Stefan. He’s another brother, by the way.”
“Dear old Dad apparently sowed his seed as far and wide as any of our sires,” Matthew said.
“So many?” Henry asked.
Michael nodded. “Also Robert. And most recently, Daniel.”
Henry’s mind boggled. “They all took up with staff?”
“Indeed,” Matthew said. “They’re all married, too.”
“Married? All of them?”
“Shockingly happy, as well,” Michael said.
Henry was stunned to hear this. First that any Hawk married, let alone so many of them. And they were happy? He wondered about the whispers and hints about more than one participant in these cases of wedded bliss but didn’t know how to broach the subject with his two new companions.
“I know what you’re thinking,” Matthew said.
Henry stared into eyes so like his own. “Never say you have the touch of the witch,” he quipped.
Matthew barked out a laugh. “You mean like the one who cursed us all a century ago?”
Michael groaned. “Oh, not that old saw. The presence of a curse is surely debatable.”
“According to you, Michael,” Matthew said. “You, however, are not a Hawk.”
Henry grew quiet for a moment. “It is a penance of sorts.”
Both men turned to him, expressions of sympathy on their faces.
“There is a path to happiness, Henry,” Matthew said.
“What, marriage? And what about when I take another and break my wife’s heart?”
The two of them exchanged a look of some import, and Michael gave Matthew a nod.
“Another figures prominently in my marriage,” Matthew went on.
“Another woman?”
“No. Our companion. William.”
Henry’s mouth dropped open. “You and this William… You share your wife?”
Matthew shook his head. “It’s difficult to explain, but I love them both.”
“And they both love his handsome Hawk hide,” Michael said.
Something clicked in Henry’s mind, something about the closeness he’d seen between the countess and Michael.
“You don’t have to say what you’re thinking now, I wager,” Michael said. “Yes, I’m in love with Gabriel and Millicent.”
Henry’s pulse began to race. These two men had the kind of union he’d never even considered before making this trip to Hawksfell.
“Do all of the Hawks have such unusual marriages?”
Matthew shrugged. “That’s not for me to say. I know that a few of them found happiness that way, in our generation at least.”
Henry drained his glass, his mind spinning. “It doesn’t seem possible.”
“Oh?” Matthew signaled for the serving girl to bring them more ale. “And you’re saying you’re not dallying with that pretty valet of yours?”
Henry’s face heated. “Julian is the earl’s first footman.”
“And nearly as pretty as myself,” Michael said with a smile.
Henry ran his fingers over the rim of his glass. “Julian and I have indeed shared something.”
The two of them nodded. “Only you and Julian?”
Henry looked away. “I’d rather not say.”
He felt Matthew’s hand on his forearm. “Look, Henry. There’s no shame in admitting that we need more than one person’s love.”
“Love?” Henry’s head shot up. “I said nothing of love.”
“Passion, then,” Michael said. “In my experience, that led to love.”
“It won’t with me. This is a dalliance, as you’ve both said. I wouldn’t ever presume to know another’s heart.”
They both leaned back from the table, their hands spread.
“So you say,” Matthew said. “We only wanted to get to know you during your visit, Henry. To put you at ease.”
“Just take care,” Michael put in.
“I would never do anything to hurt either of them,” Henry rushed out.
“Ah,” Matthew said. “Seems to me that your heart is engaged.”
Henry gave a shake of his head. “No. I simply meant I wouldn’t jeopardize their positions.”
“Positions? So another of the earl’s able staff, then?” Michael asked.
Henry’s lips thinned. “I won’t talk about this.”
The other two men were quiet for a moment.
“Then let’s order lunch and worry about this heart business another time,” Matthew said.
Relief swamped Henry as Michael nodded his agreement. The serving girl came back, and Henry focused on the simple country-inn fare and his boon companions. He wouldn’t think about the other Hawks and their marriages. He wouldn’t think about sharing passion with Julian and Poppy.
And he sure as hell wouldn’t think about love.
* * * *
Poppy put the finishing touches on tonight’s dessert, another cake for the visiting Hawk. Her visiting Hawk, she mentally amended. She hadn’t made love with him yet, but she was certain she would tonight. It was what he and Julian had all but promised her as they’d been entangled in Henry’s guest room bed.
Today’s creation was a chocolate spiced cake. It was something she’d been eager to try, mixing a bit of heat with the decadent sweetness of her rich cake batter. Sweet like Julian and spicy like Henry.
As she spread the light whipped frosting over the many stacked cake layers, she couldn’t help but be reminded of their strong hands and smooth, hot skin. Henry’s full, soft lips so insistent on her core until she’d melted. Julian’s strong shaft as he’d ridden her to completion. It was beyond anything she’d ever imagined in her life. In fact, until Julian kissed her the other night she’d scarcely given passion much thought at all.
“What has you looking so dreamy?” Violet asked as she came into the kitchen.
It was midafternoon, and the servants’ hall was quiet and the kitchen all but empty. In less than an hour, that would all change as dinner preparations began.
“Dreamy?” Poppy asked.
“Yes.” Violet tipped her chin in the direction of the cake. “You’re looking at that cake like you can’t wait to indulge.”
Poppy stared at her for a beat. “Indulge. Yes.”
“Oh, please tell me you made a version for us?”
Poppy smiled, looking down at her cake again. “Of course.”
Violet made a sound of anticipated enjoyment. “I shall miss you when you go.”
Poppy looked sharply at her now. “When I go?”
Had someone learned of her liaison with Julian and Henry? Would she be sacked now? Without references and with no means to make her way?
“Yes. When you find success as a pastry chef Hawksfell shall miss its greatest treat.”
Poppy nearly fainted with relief. “I daresay I won’t be leaving any time soon. Even if I have my cakes featured in the village I’ll still work here.”
“And glad I am to hear that,” Mrs. Padmont said as she bustled into the kitchens. “Hawksfell is becoming well-known for its desserts.”
“It’s your reputation that brings guests to the manor,” Poppy countered.
The c
ook beamed, then turned to Violet. “What are you about this afternoon, Violet?”
Violet shrugged and leaned against the work table. “Lady Hawksfell isn’t feeling very well, so she’s resting.”
Mrs. Padmont nodded. “It’s the baby that’s doing that. Well, she should rest while she can. Once the little one is here, there won’t be much rest for her.”
“Or for the nurse and nanny,” Violet said. “Although knowing our mistress as I do, she’ll take an eager hand in the raising of the littlest Hawk.”
Poppy smiled to think of a baby in the house. It seemed strange, as the place had been rumored to be a bachelor’s domain up until a year ago. Not that she’d been here when the earl met his countess, but she’d heard. Despite Mrs. Holmes’s rules against gossip, the staff knew things that would turn the housekeeper’s hair snow white.
“I wonder who the baby will favor,” Poppy mused aloud. “Will he be dark like the earl, do you think?”
“Or fair like the other,” Violet put in.
“Violet!” Mrs. Padmont said. “Never speak that way.”
Violet looked alarmed. “I only meant that the countess is quite fair.”
Violet appeared to be genuinely sorry for raising the subject of the unusual marriage of the earl and his lady. Poppy didn’t see much of the couple, stuck down in the kitchens as she was, but she’d heard they were both quite close with the countess’s third cousin, Michael Crowley. A notion came to her, one of both men loving the same woman. She swallowed a gasp. Hadn’t she been contemplating just such an arrangement as she’d iced the cake?
“…tonight, Poppy?” Mrs. Padmont said, breaking through to her.
“Hmm?” Poppy stared at the cook. “I’m sorry, what did you say?”
Mrs. Padmont tied an apron around her wide middle as she clicked her tongue. “I asked about the preparations for the meal, Poppy. There’s the fish sauce to see to.”
Poppy carefully set the prized dessert aside and set on the task of preparing the accompaniment to the rest of the meal. Henry would dine abovestairs with the family tonight. Julian would serve the meat course. Her two men would be in the same room, yet unable to converse freely. She was grateful in that moment for the fact that she would remain safely in the kitchens.